It's a coming-of-age story set in Saigon, Vietnam, in 1951 and 1961. It examines the life of a servant girl at age 10 and again at age 20.
Mui (Man San Lu/Tran Nu Yên-Khê) works for an aristocratic family that has fallen on difficult times financially. A daughter, Mui's age, has died; there are three sons in the family. The father (Ngoc Trung Tran) is often gone or sadly plays music when at home. The mother (Thi Loc Truong) is kind, and Mui is trained in cooking and service by an older woman (Anh Hoa Nguyen). Mui is quiet but very observant of life around her, including lush vegetation and what seem to be pet amphibians.
Ten years later, the family can no longer afford to keep Mui as a servant. She becomes the servant for the much wealthier Khuyen (Hoa Hoi Vuong), a pianist who had been the friend of one of the sons. Khuyen spends his time playing the piano. His fiancée is Thu (Vantha Talisman), who seems to be a party girl who doesn't appreciate his music.
Gradually, Khuyen has begun to notice his beautiful servant as he's made sketches of her on his musical score paper. He finally turns to her quiet nature and teaches her to read and write. It ends with Mui reading to Khuyen.
This film contains a limited number of words; the story is carried by flowing images and cinematography. It does seem to firmly endorse very traditional male-female relationships, with the more energetic fiancée shunted off to the side. The film is beautifully done, and the soundtrack can put you to sleep. I'd really like a little more plot.
Mui (Man San Lu/Tran Nu Yên-Khê) works for an aristocratic family that has fallen on difficult times financially. A daughter, Mui's age, has died; there are three sons in the family. The father (Ngoc Trung Tran) is often gone or sadly plays music when at home. The mother (Thi Loc Truong) is kind, and Mui is trained in cooking and service by an older woman (Anh Hoa Nguyen). Mui is quiet but very observant of life around her, including lush vegetation and what seem to be pet amphibians.
Ten years later, the family can no longer afford to keep Mui as a servant. She becomes the servant for the much wealthier Khuyen (Hoa Hoi Vuong), a pianist who had been the friend of one of the sons. Khuyen spends his time playing the piano. His fiancée is Thu (Vantha Talisman), who seems to be a party girl who doesn't appreciate his music.
Gradually, Khuyen has begun to notice his beautiful servant as he's made sketches of her on his musical score paper. He finally turns to her quiet nature and teaches her to read and write. It ends with Mui reading to Khuyen.
This film contains a limited number of words; the story is carried by flowing images and cinematography. It does seem to firmly endorse very traditional male-female relationships, with the more energetic fiancée shunted off to the side. The film is beautifully done, and the soundtrack can put you to sleep. I'd really like a little more plot.